HD Heads-Up: March 5 – 11

February 24, 2022 0 Comments

➢➢ Beyond the Veil (TVNZ 2, 9.35 Mondays from March 7) is a new anthology scripted series that explores supernatural stories of Māori, Pasifika, and Filipino cultures in NZ. They range from familial horror (Albularyo), found footage thrills (26:29) and a haunted road trip (Tappy) to spooky tales about coming of age (Te Kohu – The Mist), bloody revenge (Taumanu) and a flatmate from the afterlife (Giving Up the Ghost). The full series will be available on TVNZ OnDemand the same day Taumanu premieres on TVNZ 2. It will air after Skin A&E, which moves to an earlier 8.30 slot, and ahead of The Walking Dead, which has been rating so poorly that it will now screen 10.35 Mondays, after a re-run of Two and a Half Men …

➢➢ Sixteen years after its launch, The Crowd Goes Wild is red-carding its weeknight half-hour format to screen twice-weekly on Prime: 8.30 Mondays from March 7, as an hour-long show, and 10.20 Thursdays, as a 30-minute edition (it also will screen twice-weeky on Sky Sport). Sceptics might attribute this to cutbacks because of persistently low ratings but executive producer Ric Salizzo told The TV Guide it’s part of a wider strategy to provide more content online. He says Monday and Thursday were the most-watched broadcast nights as viewers tuned in for a wrap of the weekend’s events and a preview of the sport to come. “Those are our two tentpoles. That’s where the audience really wants us to be so let’s focus on that. And then for the rest of the time, let’s really put a lot of effort into our digital audience” …

➢➢ Duke will go wild for the Beijing 2022 Paralympic Winter Games, which will pre-empt normal programming from March 5 with all-day live and highlights coverage …

➢➢ Maori TV will premiere the 2018 National Geographic series David Rocco’s Dolce Africa on March 8 in its 7.30 Kai slot. Reads the blurb: “From ancient tribal villages and rural working farms, to breathtaking natural parks and big bustling cities, David explores the rich and diverse cultures and culinary worlds of Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania, Zanzibar and South Africa with curiosity, an open heart and an open mind” …

➢➢ Louis Theroux fans should note Prime has delayed the premiere of Forbidden America, from March 2 to March 9. Prime’s Best of Outback Truckers also has been pushed back a week, to March 6 …

➢➢ And TVNZ 1 is replacing the S2 premiere of Happy Campers,The Caravan Park, with S3 of Hotel Benidorm: Sun, Sea and Sangria (4.00 Sundays from March 6). Hotel Benidorm’s original 3.00 Sunday slot will be usurped by S2 re-runs of Inside Taronga Zoo …

➢➢ A 20th anniversary special of Sunday will screen on March 6 (TVNZ 1, 7.30) …

➢➢ RuPaul and music guests Regard x Years & Years will appear on the March 10 broadcast of The Graham Norton Show (Three, 8.30) …

➢➢ Ending their runs that week will be The Wall, Mary Berry’s Love To Cook, Call the Midwife, Belgravia, Angela Black, The Voice Australia: Generations, Reunited and We Are Lady Parts …

➢➢ Godzilla – King of the Monsters will screen free-to-air for the first time on March 6 (TVNZ 2, 8.00). Other HD coming attractions will include: